Grazing

When I was thinking about the form I want this blog to follow, I knew that some part of it had to be about cooking and food. I talk with friends about what Ina (we're on a first-name basis) made on the food network, I experiment with new ingredients I find at Fairway and green markets and I have recently begun baking cakes...I'm now in charge of birthdays at work. What I didn't consider when thinking this through is that I would be working twelve hour days and walking around in panic-driven flop sweat (that's a story for another day). I'm stealing away 10 minutes to type this during my "lunch break," which really doesn't exist.

Matt and Julie challenged me to perfect the souffle this year and I have only made one--albeit absolutely delicious. I managed to make a batch of quinoa salad on Sunday that has lasted me through four meals this week and my dinner last night consisted of ten stale animal crackers with peanut butter. Anyway, I am hoping to get back to the souffles, cakes, and semi-vegetarian cooking soon, but it is going to take at least another week.


In the meantime, my boss has been very generous this week with providing food to keep us alive during the installation and we have been grazing on delicious mezze platters. Yesterday's spread was filled with dried fruit and nuts, salami, spelt pretzels, and grapes. Today we actually squealed and clapped when a platter filled with blue corn chips and Fairway guacamole showed up with insanely delicious olives, cheeses and fruit. I actually don't think I have ever had olives this good before--a lot of rosemary, and something else...mellowed the sometimes bitter flavor so all that is left is salty goodness.